©Mennonite Heritage Centre 2002
Last updated February 17, 2021.

Mennonite Heritage Centre
Winnipeg, Manitoba

Title:Sterling Mennonite Fellowship (Winnipeg) fonds
Dates: 1955-2016
Extent: 2.3 meters of textual records
Extent: 6 photographs

Historical note

This congregation traces its beginnings to 1951 when two fellowship groups which met in the homes of Corny Derksen and Jake Derksen, decided to rent the Greendale Hall in St. Vital for the purpose of establishing a mission church. Ministers D.D. Schulz and D.D. Klassen helped advise and organize the group in 1952. Their first building was constructed in 1954.  In 1956, the decision was made to move toward membership in the Conference of Mennonites in Manitoba, promting seven EMMC families in the congregation to leave to maintain their coference affiliation.  Until 1957, the group was known as the "St. Vital Mennonite Mission Group." In 1958, the name was changed to "Sterling Avenue Mennonite Church," and Rev. H.T. Klassen became the leader, giving leadership untill 1963. The congregation was accepted as a member of the Conference of Mennonites in Manitoba at its annual session in Morden, Manitoba on November 11, 1959.  The congregation met in the curch building at 18 Sterling Avenue until the end of March 1970, when a new building was completed at St. Mary's Road and Marion Place.  Their name was then changed to "Sterling Mennonite Fellowship," which it retained when it moved to yet another new building in 1980 at 1008 Dekota Street at Nova Vista Drive.
The leaders of the congregation were: Henry T. Klassen (1958-1963), Rev. Jacob W. Schmidt (1963-1968), Rev. David Letkemann (1968-1969), Rev. John F. Wiebe (1969-1973), Helmut Rauser (1975-1976), Gary Loewen (1977-1978), Don MacBurney (1979-1980), Gary Martens (1979-1984), Erwin Wiebe (1984-1986), and Norm Voth (1988-2000), John B. Wiebe (2001-2007), Ed Cornelson (2007-2009), Terry Goertzen (2009-2014), and Moses Falco (2015-).

Scope and content note

This fonds consists of Church bulletins, pastors' correspondence, treasurer's correspondence, Sunday School records, membership records, constitutions, church board and membership meeting minutes and reports, administrative files (such as activities of the Service committee and the Christian Endeavour and youth committee work during the late 1960s, pastoral search committee files, church retreat files, a Vacation Bible School file, and topical files such as war tax, prison, congregation statistics and gift discernment.), financial records (such as building committee records such as the specifications for the construction of the Church at Marvin Place and documents pertaining to its sale and the 1981 building plans), ladies group records and a small photograph collection (depicting various functions of the church such as Sunday School, girl's club, adult Bible Study group, evening worship service and the exterior of the church building.) These files all related to the activities of the congregation, first as a mission outreach project and, secondly, as an established church.

Finding aids

Finding aid consists of a series description and inventory file list.

Notes

Arrangement

Arranged and described by Alf Redekopp 2002 and 2016, updated by Andrew Klassen Brown in June 2020.

Restrictions on access

none

Other notes

Accession No. 94-202, 2018-039.

Photos - Location: work room Acc. No. 94-202.

Sterling Mennonite Fellowship fonds inventory file list:

1. Sterling Mennonite Fellowship bulletins (1960-1964).
2. Sterling Mennonite Fellowship bulletins (1965-1969).

1. Sterling Mennonite Fellowship bulletins (1970-1974).
2. Sterling Mennonite Fellowship bulletins (1975-1979).

1. Sterling Mennonite Fellowship bulletins (1980-1984).
2. Sterling Mennonite Fellowship bulletins (1985).
3. Sterling Mennonite Fellowship bulletins (1986).
4. Sterling Mennonite Fellowship bulletins (1987).

1. Sterling Mennonite Fellowship bulletins (1988).
2. Sterling Mennonite Fellowship bulletins (1989).
3. Sterling Mennonite Fellowship bulletins (1990).
4. Sterling Mennonite Fellowship bulletins (1991).
5. Sterling Mennonite Fellowship bulletins (1992).

1. Sterling Mennonite Fellowship historical sketches (1977-1984).
2. Pastor H.T. Klassen correspondence (1959-1966).
3. Pastor J.W. Schmidt correspondence (1968).
4. Correspondence of the Treasurer John Thiessen (1964-1976).
5. Correspondence of the Treasurer John Thiessen (1985).
6. Film’s Record [book] (1959-1972).
7. Guest book (1959-1981).
8. Sunday School attendance and offering records (1964-1965, 1966-1967, 1973-1974).

1. Membership lists (1961-1989).
2. Membership transfers (1960-1970).
3. Membership transfers (1970-1976).
4. Membership transfers (1976-1980).
5. Membership transfers (1980-1985).
6. Membership transfers (1986-1990).
7. Death certificates (1979, 1980, 1983, 1986, 1987).

1. Church constitutions (1958-1984).
2. St. Vital Mennonite Mission Group reports (1955-1956).
3. St. Vital Mennonite Mission minutes (1952-1964). 1 bound volume. This item contains Committee and General meetings minutes (1952-1959), Church Committee minutes (1959-1964), and Congregation meeting minutes (1959-1964). The item consist of one bound volume with several loose items such as reports inserted at the appropriate place.
4. Church board minutes (pp.1-129) and Congregational meeting minutes (pp. 131-180) (1964-1970). 1 bound volume.
5. Church board minutes and congregational meeting minutes (1970-1978). 1 bound volume.
6. Church board meeting minutes (1978-1984). 1 bound volume
7. Church minutes (1958-1968). 1cm of textual records (1 folder).
8. Membership meeting minutes (1983-1989). 1 file. This file contains an incomplete set of minutes for the designated period.
9. Board meeting minutes (1963-1968).
10. Board meeting minutes (1975, 1977).
11. Board meeting minutes (1978).
12. Board meeting minutes (1979).
13. Board meeting minutes (1980).
14. Board meeting minutes (1981).
15. Board meeting minutes (1982).
16. Church evaluation forms (1984)
17. Board meeting minutes (1983).
18. Board meeting minutes (1984).
19. Board meeting minutes (1985).
20. Board meeting minutes (1986).
21. Board meeting minutes (1987).
22. Board meeting minutes (1988).
23. Board meeting minutes (1989-1990).
24. Annual reports (1959-1969).
25. Annual reports (1970-1979).
26. Annual reports (1980-1984).
27. Audited financial statements (1984-1988).
28. Education board meeting minutes (1963-1968)
29. Sunday School teachers meeting minutes (1962-1983)
30. Service committee programs (1966-1972)
31. Christian Endeavour committee (1965-1967)
32. Church survey (1975)
33. Here’s Life Canada 1978.
34. Correspondence (1979-1983)
35. Church evaluation (1982).
36. Youth committee minutes and other material (1959-1967).
37. Youth constitutions (1960, 1963, 1967).
38. Pulpit Committee (1979)
39. Pastoral search committee (1983-1984).
40. Search committee (1983-1984).
41. Pioneer Clubs (1986-1987).
42. Church retreat (1979)
43. Church retreat questionnaire (forms).
44. Gift discernment (1978)
45. Bernice Schellenberg (Jesperson) Operation Mobilization (1978-1981).
46. St. Vital Ecumenical council (1979, 1981).
47. Prison (1981-1983).
48. War tax issue (1978).
49. Vacation Bible School (1975-1986).
50. Bulletins/Joint services (1983-1986).
51. Church retreats (1979-1984).
52. Statistical report (1986, 1987).

1. [Specifications for] Church at Marvin Place & St. Mary’s Road St. Vital / by Architect W.I. Enns. (1968). 2 bound volumes labelled set 1 and set 2.
2. Record of offerings (1959-1975).
3. Financial Ledger (1961-1976).
4. Financial Ledger (1977-1979).
5. Board meeting minutes (1979). (1 of 2 items)
6. Board meeting minutes (1979). (2 of 2 items)
7. Board meeting minutes (1980). (1 of 3 items)
8. Board meeting minutes (1980). (2 of 3 items)
9. Board meeting minutes (1980). (3 of 3 items)
10. Sunday School Financial ledger (1962-1968).
11. Safety duplicating receipts (1967-1971).
12. Safety duplicating receipts (1971-1974).
13. Youth Fellowship financial records (1961-1969). (2 bound items)
14. Church plans (1979).
15. 11 Marvin Place (property documents) (1962-1970).
16. Building Committee Report ([196-]).
17. Building Committee (1980).
18. Sale of Church (1967, 1979-1980).
19. Ladies Mission Band Constitution ([196-]).
20. Ladies Mission Band (1955).
21. Ladies Fellowship financial records (1964-1977). (2 notebooks)
22. Ladies Mission Band minutes (1955-1979). (6 bound items)
23. General Conference Statistical Reports (1961-1979).

1. Sterling Mennonite Fellowship bulletins (1991).
2. Sterling Mennonite Fellowship bulletins (1992).
3. Sterling Mennonite Fellowship bulletins (1993).
4. Sterling Mennonite Fellowship bulletins (1994), annual meeting minutes (1994).
5. Sterling Mennonite Fellowship bulletins (1995).
6. Annual Reports (1992-1994, 1997, 1999).
7. Christmas program (1987, 1994), annual meeting minutes (1992, 1994, 1995, 1998), Pastoral review meeting minutes (1994).

Volume 2766

1.  Sterling Mennonite Fellowship bulletins (1996)

2.  Sterling Mennonite Fellowship bulletins (1997)

3.  Sterling Mennonite Fellowship bulletins (1998)

4.  Sterling Mennonite Fellowship bulletins (1999)

5.  Sterling Mennonite Fellowship bulletins (2000)

6.  Sterling Mennonite Fellowship bulletins (2001)

7.  Sterling Mennonite Fellowship bulletins (2002)

8.  Sterling Mennonite Fellowship bulletins (2003)

9.  Sterling Mennonite Fellowship bulletins (2004)

Volume 6346

1.  Sterling Mennonite Fellowship bulletins (2016)

Volume 6455

6.      Sterling Mennonite Fellowship Bulletins. -- 2005.

7.      Sterling Mennonite Fellowship Bulletins. -- 2006.

8.      Sterling Mennonite Fellowship Bulletins. -- 2007.

9.      Sterling Mennonite Fellowship Bulletins. -- 2008.

10.  Sterling Mennonite Fellowship Youth Fellowship Minutes. -- 1962-1966.

11.  Sterling Mennonite Fellowship Guestbook. -- 1981-2008.